Rabbi `Oḅadyah Maimūnī on the Inner-Shayṭān

Know, o brother, how vigilant a man would be, if he were to know that he has an enemy who, not content with destroying and suppressing him, is resolved to seize his wife, raper her in his presence and kill his children. He would be ever-vigilant, even while eating and drinking, sleeping or waking, to ward off his enemy.

As for the course to be followed, you must install the intellect in the center "upon the throne of his kingdom (Duet. 17.18). Then appoint the soul as his minister, the principal organs as close commanders and the secondary organs as servants in waiting, having each member carry out that which you deem appropriate. In this way, you will condemn your enemy and bind him "in fetters" and you will 'give judgment against him". (Jer 39.7, 5)

Therefore be sure to learn all the artifices with which he defense himself. "Neither shall your eye pity him", (Duet.12.9) for to be merciful towards evildoers is (to show them) inclemency, as the Sage has said, "For the mercy of the evil is cruel", (Prov. 12.10),

Chapter 13

At prayer time, purify your niyyah (intention) and be thoroughly mindful of what you say. Beware not to harbor thoughts of anything else but the object of your devotion, lest the serpent's venom penetrate you at the moment of inattention and render your du`a (supplication) unacceptable and to no avail.

Consequently, as a preliminary to prayer, it is fitting to prepare oneself through the wuḍū (ablution) of one's hands and fee, restoring and arousing thereby the soul. Furthermore, always recite a preliminary Psalm so that you kavvanah (singular concentration) be engaged and avoid praying in ruined places lest you entertain foreign thoughts. ... pay no attention to people who content themselves at prayer time with concentrating on the first verse of the Shema' and the first paragraph [of the `Amīdah], for the Truth shall show the Path.

Chapter 14

The Rambam on his son, Rabbeinu Aḅraham

Aḅraham ben Maimonides was a Judeo-Ṣūfī, author of Kifāyat al-`Abidīn, the head of the Egyptian Jewish community, who readopted the ancient Jewish practice of Salāh and instituted it for Egyptian Jewry. The Rambam said the following of his son, lest any imagine the controversial views and practices of Aḅraham were disavowed by his father:

When I consider the current state of the world, only two things console me: my involvement with wisdom, and the fact that my son Aḅraham has been blessed by God with the grace and the fits of the one whose name he bears [Aḅraham Aḅeinu] trusted, sustain, preserve, and lengthen my son's life and years. He is humble and unassuming when among others, in addition to all his other fine qualities. His mind grasps even the subtlest concepts, and he has a fine disposition. Without a doubt, he will be prominent among the great men of the generation, with God's help. I entreat God to watch over him and maintain His kindnesses to him. - Igros Ha'Rambam [Sheilat], vol. 1. p 424

Rabbi `Oḅadyah Maimūnī on Reason, Purity and the Mitzvōt

Were an individual to remain steadfast and persevere continuously until he achieved this state, then the phenomena that were previously concealed from him and others, would be revealed to him. Reason’s will shall strengthen and reveal that which is inscribed on the Tablet (al-lawḥ) Divine visions will be manifested to him without his knowing whence they came. He will walk by the light of his intellect, directed by its guidance. So take heed of your soul and safeguard its form, for the former has no lasting beatitude unless accompanied by Reason... [Like Moses taught the tribes] imparting to each individual in accordance with his capacity of understanding; this is similar to the manner in which reason itself proceeds [with us]. Chapter 6

Know that prolonged consumption of harmful foodstuffs causes acute ailments... Likewise a man who neglects his soul, abandoning it to its illness through his indulgence in worldly affairs, spending night and day buying and selling and so forth, will have nothing but fearful and alarming dreams upon retiring to sleep... It is for this reason that our pure and purifying Law has cautioned us concerning all external and internal defilement. The former, such as menstruation and nocturnal emission, are to be cleansed through immersion in a miqvah. Thus, Aaron and his descendants were enjoined “to wash their hands and feet, that they do not perish” (Ex. 30.21) this being the reason for the act of purification. For through the conviction man’s soul acquires after immersion that all veils, as it were, have been lifted, there ensues a state similar to spiritual predisposition (tahayyu’) and communion (ittiṣāl) with God. If not in need of immersion, then one must carry out the ablution of the hands and feet in order that the natural heat circulates in the body and arouse thereby the soul... “Say not v’neṭme’tem and (you shall become defiled) but v’niṭamṭem (and you shall become feeble-minded). (Yōmā’ 39a) Chapter 7.49-51, 53

In a similar spirit, other prohibitions have been instituted by the religious law in order to restrain man’s lust and keep him from resembling the beast. Among these rank the class of forbidden unions and those not legitimately contracted... Also belong to this group the precept of circumcision which is carried out on the physical organ through which marriage is consummated. As for the commandments concerning the wearing of tzītzīt and tefilīn and the fixing of an inscription to the mezūzah, they were instituted in order to remind the soul at the moments of inadvertence of its purpose and it is said concerning the tzītzīt, “That you may look upon it and remember all the mitzvōt of YHVH’. (Num. 15.39)... Hence it behooves the wise man not to ascend to a state which is too elevated for him but to be aware of the extent of his soul’s (capacity) and advance gradually, as is the wont of nature, which assimilates things progressively... be heedful of your soul, so that when you far upon the Path, you will be free of fear, “For the ground upon which you stand is holy” (Ex. 3.5) Mark these my words.” Chapter 5

More Ḥaqq from Rabbi `Oḅadyah Maimūnī

Let not your intent (himma) falter upon seeing the difficulty and remoteness of the task. Say not that you are the prisoner of lust, anger, hunger, thirst, heat, cold, fear or disease, thus weakening your resolve to search. Instead fortify your determination, toiling in your effort, for whosoever persevere in this pursuit is a true man (al-insān `ala l-ḥaqīqah), concerning whom David has said ‘Happy is the man whose strength is in You, in whose heart are the highways.” (Ps. 84.6), “Happy is the people whose God is YHVH.” (Ps. 144.15) It is proper that this verse is in the singular for this pursuit is the exclusive concern of the individual. But he who remains remiss (therein) is regarded as a dead man, (Ned. 64b)… (Chapter 2.19-20)

There exists no pre-determination (jabr) and therefore man should close his thoughts to all and awaken his intellect, devoting himself to it since it is the bond (wuṣla) between him and his Creator. Were he continually to think of It, he would not fail to find It, as the prophet has said, Seek YHVH while It is to be found… (Is. 55.6) Were an individual to remain steadfast and persevere continuously until he achieved this state, then the phenomena that were previously concealed from him and others, would be revealed to him. Reason’s will shall strengthen and reveal that which is inscribed on the Table (al-Lawḥ)… [the soul] has no lasting beatitude unless accompanied by Reason. (Chapter 6.37-41)

Reason is the bond (wuṣla) between the Creator and Its creatures… Consider how milk flows from the breast of the nursing mother whenever she thinks of her suckling; even though the latter be not with her, her compassion is moved ‘as a father has mercy upon his children’. (Ps 103.13) In a similar manner upon encountering a mutual affinity (munāsaba) with a certain individual, Reason will abide with the latter and never forsake him, “I will be with him in adversity (Ps. 91.15) “Fear not for I am with you (Is. 43.5) “when you pass through the waters I will be with you” (ibid.2) Be then attentive of this noble discipline and engage therein all your time… (Chapter 1.9-14)

The Exilarch and the Scepter of Judah

They are know as the ten Batlaaneem (men of leisurely devotion to the community), for they occupy themselves with nothing other than the needs of the community... Over all of them is Daniel b. Chasday, who is called the "Exilarch of All Israel." ...The Jews address him as Our Lord the Exilarch and the Muslims address him as Sayyidnaa Ibn Daa'ud. He has been invested with supreme authority over the congregation of Israel by the Ameer al-Mu'mineen, the lord of the Muslims. For thus Muhammad commanded concerning the Exilarch and his descendants, and he issued him a seal of authority over all the sacred congregations living under his rule. Likewise, he ordered that every individual, be he Muslim or Jew, or member of any other people within his kingdom, should rise up before him and salute him, and that whoever does not rise up before him should receive one hundred lashes.

Every Thursday, when he goes to behold the face of the great Caliph, he is accompanied by Gentile and Jewish horsemen, and heralds cry out before him: "Make way for our Lord, the scion of David, as is due him!" In their language they say: "I'maloo tareeq li-Sayyidnaa Ibn Daa'ood." He rides on horseback wearing garments of embroidered silk with a large turban on his head. Over the turban is a large white shawl upon which is a chain. And on it is the seal of Muhammad. When he comes before the Caliph, he kisses his hand. Then the Caliph rises before him, seats him upon a throne which Muhammad had ordered to be made in his honor. And all of the Muslim princes who have come to behold the face of the Caliph rise altogether before him. The Exilarch then sits upon his throne facing the Caliph, for thus did Muhammad command in order to fulfill the scriptural verse:

The scepter shall not pass from Judah,
Nor the rule's staff from between his feet;
Until he come to Shiloh,
and the homage of peoples be him. (Gen. 49.10)

Benjamin of Tudela's Description of Baghadadi Jewry (Second Half of the Twelfth Century), cited in Norman Stillman's The Jews of Arab Lands, (JPS, 1979) pp. 253

Rabbeinu Baḥya on al-`Aql (Reason)

“Make reason your `amīr, understanding your vizier (wazīr), science (`ilm) your guide (hādī), and (zuhud) your friend (walī).” Baḥya ben Yuṣūf ibn Paquda

Taqlīd

"As for he who accepts taqlīd, it is as if he were never born. 'An untimely birth is better than he.' (Qohelet/Ecc. 6.3)" `Oḅadyah Maimūnī